Adrian Monk's Selfless Act
by Marie S Zachary
Summary: Adrian Monk is used to getting requests for help in a seemingly helpless situation but one night a woman comes to his door asking him to go above and beyond solving a case. He is being asked to give a part of himself for the daughter of the man he hates. Will he be able to do it? Will he agree? Exactly what is the situation? Read more and find out. Read with a box of tissues
1. A Strange Woman

The night would have been the perfect setting for horror films. Thunder cracked like a baseball bat making contact with a baseball. Lightening flashed like a camera. It was the kind of night that made Adrian Monk feel like he was going to crawl out of his skin. He hated thunder. He hated lightening. It was different when Trudy was alive. She was always able to settle him down. She was always able to make him laugh and distract him from whatever it was that had been bothering him.  
Without her, there was no way to diminish or ease the anxiety. Just as he was going to go get his vacuum and clean (cleaning always made him feel better) an intense know at the door was heard.  
For just one moment Adrian allowed himself to dream. He allowed himself to dream that the person on the other end of the door was Trudy. He knew it would be impossible. That's why he only allowed himself one minute of dreaming. He opened the door when he came to his senses.  
Standing outside his door was a woman. She was in her late 20's to mid 30's he guess and probably 5 foot 3 or 5 foot 4. She was soaked to the skin.

"Are you alright ma'am," he asked her

"You must be Adrian Monk," she said

"Yes and you must be freezing! Come inside. I don't want you to catch your death"  
She smiled gratefully at him. She stepped inside.

"Mr. Monk, my name is-"

"Never mind that right now," he said, "get in a hot shower. I will dry your clothes for you and get you a robe you can wear until they dry. We can talk as soon as you get out of the shower."  
After she had gotten out of the shower, dried off and was comfortably sitting on the couch in a warm robe and two blankets he had gotten for her, he motioned for her to begin.

"Do you want anything," he asked referring to food or drink.  
This lady did want something but it had absolutely nothing to do with food or drink. It was much deeper then that.


	2. The Outragous Request

I forgot to put the disclaimer in chapter one but I do NOT own Monk

* * *

"Maybe later," she told him, "Right now I just need to talk. My name is America Tennyson and I have a 9-year-old daughter named Lark."  
At the name Tennyson Monk stiffened.

"Tennyson… any chance you're related to Warrick"  
America sighed.

"Warrick is my husband," she said, "and I am very disapproving of what he did. It was wrong in every sense of the word wrong and than some. Our daughter, Lark is nine years old and since the time she was five she had been suffering from kidney failure"  
In spite himself feelings of empathy bubbled to the surface.

"So you must have been desperate huh?"

"In a word," America said, "yes. Lark's kidneys have failed so badly she needs a kidney transplant. My doctor gave me a list-"

"Why can't your husband or you donate your kidney," Monk asked

"I'm not a match and Warrick had suffered from kidney failure before so it would be impossible for him to donate"

"Oh," Monk said, "I understand. That must have been a desperate situation"  
"My doctor has given me a list of all the people that he knows who happens to be a match. I know he broke the HIPPA law but desperate times call for desperate measures."  
Monk nodded. He wouldn't peruse this one. He knew what desperate was.

"Yes," he said understandingly

"You happen to be on the list," America said, "and you have 8 out of 8 markers. They know from previous tests."  
Adrian remembered being tested when his older brother Ambrose developed kidney failure. He was not a match for Ambrose but eventually Ambrose did get the transplant he needed. Now, GOD KNOWS HOW LONG later he was sitting in his own apartment being asked to donate his kidney to a girl who 1) he didn't know from a hole in the wall and 2) was the daughter of the man that made the bomb that killed Trudy. This woman had to be crazy or desperate. Knowing the situation, Adrian could understand the desperation. He could even forgive what Warrick did. Adrian however was being asked to go above and beyond forgiving the man that killed Trudy. He was being asked to go through a surgical procedure to save the life of a child. He loved children ever since Tommy but this was ridiculous. He had every right to say "absolutely not". For some reason he couldn't find the voice to say it though. Suddenly what he had said time and time again by route memory began to make sense.


	3. Incomplete Thoughts

Trudy once remarked in one of her articles, "Just because you can do something doesn't mean it's easy to do". At the time Adrian hadn't understood that. He was always a very literal thinker and he hadn't gotten the deeper meaning behind it. Trudy explained it. She told him to picture someone going through a tough time. She pointed out that from her observation, people either can't handle stress very well. You may be talking to them but it's like they don't hear you. They could acknowledge you and what you're saying but their mind is a trillion miles away.  
After she pointed that out he was always very careful to be sensitive towards people when they were going through a tough time. He didn't always succeed at doing so, but he always did his best to do so. He could also remember one time she dared him to do whatever it was that he was doing that day in charades. He could act it out, but not actually verbalize it. When he asked her why she explained she was doing an article on non verbal communication. Several people got in on the experiment and it was interesting to see how it turned out. Some of it was successful, other parts much less so. It was funny at times and serious at other times.  
That brought him back to the fact that Trudy was gone. It brought him back to the fact that the wife of the man that made the bomb that killed her was sitting right here asking him to donate his kidney for the daughter of the man that made the bomb that killed Trudy. This was not a descision he could make right away and yet for some reason he could not bring himself to be rude or aburupt with this lady


	4. A Mother's Pain

"You said your situation is desperate," Monk said. "How desperate is it? How long do the doctors say she has until a donation wouldn't help her?"

"Three weeks," America replied sofly. "A month at most." She looked at him earnestly. "I love her so much, and I can't stand the thought of losing both her and Warrick. I know you know he's terminally ill and the doctors say he doesn't have much longer before he dies. I can't do anthing for him, so I feel like I have to try doubly hard to save Lark. It's what gave me the courage to approach you at all."

"I'd like to take a week to decide," Monk said. "This is...this is a hard decision for me to make."

"I understand," America said. "Thank you for not turning me down right away. I was worried you might, and I knew you had every right to, because of what my husband did to your wife."

The room was quiet for a long moment except or the sounds of the storm outside. "Your clothes should be dry by now," Monk finally said to break the silence. "I'll go get them." He got up, got her clothes, and gave them back to her. She took them and went to the bathroom to change. When she came back, she started to head towards the door to leave. "You can stay here until the storm stops," Monk offered.

"Thank you," America said, sitting back down in the same seat she'd sat in before. They both sat there, lost in their own thoughts until the storm passed by and America could leave.  
...

Natalie noticed the next morning that something was bothering Monk. "What's wrong, Mr. Monk?" she asked.

"Nothing," he replied.

"You're a terrible liar, Mr. Monk," Natalie told him. "I can tell that something is bothering you. Please tell me what it is."

"Do you remember my telling you about Warrick Tennson?" he asked.

"The man who made the bomb that killed Trudy?" Natalie asked.

"Yes," Monk said. "His wife came here last night. Their daughter has kidney failure and needs a transplant and I'm the closest match. She asked me if I would donate one of my kidneys."

"What did you say?" Natalie asked.

"I asked her if I could have a week to decide," Monk told her.

"That sounds reasonable, considering all the different factors in the decision," Natalie said. "I wouldn't be able to make a decision quickly, either, if I was in your shoes."

"What would you be doing in my shoes?" Monk asked.

"It's an expression," Natalie said with fond exasperation.

"Natalie, could I ask you a big favor?" Monk asked.

"Sure," Natalie said.

"Will you please not ask me if I've made a decision about this?" Monk asked.

"All right," Natalie replied. "If you'll promise to tell me as soon as you've definitely made a decision."

"Okay," Monk said.


	5. No Words Can Say Thank You Enough

Days passed, and Monk told both Leland and Dr. Kroger about the conversation with America, her request that he donate one of his kidneys to Lark, and how he had told her he would think about it for a week and get back to her. Leland thought he was crazy for even considering it while Dr. Kroger was impressed for that same reason. Monk continued to think about what he should do at every chance he could, which would sometimes lead to him obsessing over it or almost freaking out about it. Sometimes he thought he had decided one way or the other about what he was going to do, only to realize that he hadn't and that he had to keep thinking about it. That added frustration at not being able to decide on top of everything else. On the one hand, this was the daughter of the man who built the bomb to kill Trudy who needed the transplant. Added to this was his fear of needles, hospitals, and surgeries. But on the other hand, Lark was just a child, and he didn't like the idea of a child suffering. It was also wrong to punish her for something she didn't do. Third, and most importantly, he felt...no, he knew...that Trudy would have wanted him to donate his kidney to help Lark.  
...

Finally one week from the day America made her request to Monk, he and Natalie were at his home. He turned to her and said. "I've decided to donate my kidney to Lark."

Natalie looked at him. "Really?" she asked him.

"Yes," Monk said. "I know it's what Trudy would have wanted."

Just then there came a knock at the door. Natalie went to get it and found America standing outside. "Hi," she said. "I'm Mr. Monk's assistant, Natalie. Are you America?"

"Yes," America said.

"Please come in," Natalie said, moving to let her past.

"Thank you," America said, and walked past her into the room. Monk came in. "Hello, Mr. Monk," she greeted him.

"Hello, America," he answered her. "I've decided to donate my kidney to Lark."

Tears filled America's eyes. "You have?" she repeated.

"Yes," Monk told her.

"Oh thank you," America said, her tears spilling over.

...

Monk talked all the way to the hospital. Natalie had been around him long enough to know that he was talking because he was nervous about the procedure, and kept up her end of the conversation in hopes that it would help keep his nerves down at a manageable level. Everything went okay until they reached the door of the operating room, and then Monk froze in panic, literally unable to force himself to keep walking. This had happened before and Natalie looked at the waiting doctor. "Could you give us a few minutes?" she asked. The doctor nodded. Natalie knew that the best way to unfreeze Monk when he got like this was to lead him in the opposite direction from whatever had caused the panic for a short distance, help him to calm down, and then try again. She did this and the second time he walked in and got onto the operating table. She could see he was still nervous. "Would it help if I stayed in the room until you're asleep?" she asked. He nodded and she turned to the doctor. "Would you mind?"

"Not at all," the doctor said, "There's plenty of room."

Natalie took his hand in hers. "I'm very proud of you for doing this, Mr. Monk," she said as the needle for the IV was put into his arm, "And I know Trudy would be, too, if she were here right now." Trudy, he thought, and smiled as he drifted off to sleep to dream of the beautiful woman he loved.

...

It seemed like only moments later that he woke up. He felt kind of groggy and lightheaded and the hospital room he was in seemed almost dreamlike. After a few minutes, the effect faded and he heard female voices coming from his left side and turned to look. Natalie and America were sitting in a couple of chairs side by side and talking quietly. "Natalie?" he asked.

Natalie and America looked up and Natalie smiled. "Well, look who's awake!" she said. "How do you feel?"

"Not...too bad," Adrian replied.

America smiled. "Lark's come through the surgery well, too," she said. "Thank you again, Mr. Monk, from the bottom of my heart."


	6. A Happy Ending For Some

Fate intervined again and Warrick began to slowly recover. It was a little bit of progress at first and then slowly he had become stronger and stronger. Incredably by the time Lark was released from the hosptial the doctors had told America that Warrick was also in remission.  
It was several days after was home and FULLY recovered that Monk happened to run into America, Lark and Warrick who was now fully healthy. Lark ran over to him and hugged him.

"Thank you for saving me," she said, "and for saving my daddy"

"I was glad to do it," Monk said honestly, "But America what did she mean by saving her daddy"

"According to Warrick's doctor when you turned off Warrick's morphine it kicked his immune system into overdrive causing him to eventually be able to fight the disease."  
Monk smiled happy for them but a little bit jealous. After all they had there family back. There was no way Monk would ever get Trudy back... or so he thought.

"I never thought I would say this," Warrick said, "But thank you for turning off my mophine"

"Don't mention it," Monk said, "Seriously don't mention it"  
He said it with a slight laugh to let Lark and America know that he wasn't mad.


End file.
